Staple



Oct. 21 1924.

J. H. REED STAPLEI Filed Feb. 2, 1925 fa A9 j j f5 gli/Edf m; Md M@ Ww/@ Patented Oct. 21, 1924.

UNITED STATES 1,512,040 PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES H. REED, 0F SWAMPSCOTT, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR., BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, T0 UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, 0F PATERSON, NEW JER- SEY, A COEYORATION 0F NEW JERSEY.

STAPLE.

Application led February 2, 1923. Serial No. 616,622.

To all whom it may conce/m.'

Be it known that I, JAMES H. REED, a citizen of the United States, residing at Swampscott, county of Essex, State of Massachusetts, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Staples, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention has for its generalobject to rovide a staple or other fastenerI of simllar type which ma be driven in such a manner as to be clino ed Within the body of the work, so as to be securely retained therein without completely passing through the same, thus making a blind fastening, or a fastening which shows on only one side of the Work.

The more articular objects of the invention, toget er with means whereby the same may be carried into effect, will best be understood from the following description of one form or embodiment thereof and means for driving-the same as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It will be understood, however, that the particular constructions and operations described and shown .have been chosen for illustrative purposes merely, and that the invention, as defined by the claims hereunto appended, may be otherwise practised without departure from its spirit and scope.

In said drawin Fig, 1 is an enrged detail side view of a staple embod ing the invention.

Figs. 2, 3 an 4 are diagrammatic Views illustrating the manner of driving the stafile shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 1 showing the staple driven and clinched in the work, the latter being shown insection.

The staple S, shown in Fig. 1, comprises a substantially straight wire body 10 havin at' each end an inwardly extending pointed prong. These prongs are referably jcurved so that portions 12 of t e Shanks of said prongs extend outwardly away from each other a short distance at their parts adjacent said body and said Shanks at their parts 11 and 12 curve inwardly so that their pointed ends 14 are directed towards each other. The prongs of the staple shown in Fig. 1 are somewhat sidepomted, as denoted by the cross lines adjacent the reference numerals 11, owing to (the fact that the wire for each `staple is cut off dia onally.

The stap e above described may be driven into the work W, herein shown as comprising two superposed layers of leather 'w1 and w2, in accordance with the method and by means of the mechanism disclosed and claimed in ap lieations Serial Nos. 616,621 and 648,935 filed by -me Februar 2, 1923, and July 2, 1923, respectively. n accordance wlth the method referred to, said staple is driven through a throat 15 by means of a driver comprising a pair of driving members 16 pivoted or otherwise mounted for lateral movement upon a plun er 17 which .is reciprocated by any suita le means, not shown. The throat 15 has an open end of a widt-h substantially equal to the width of the body 10 of the staple, and consequently less than the maximum width of the staple measured across the Shanks, and adjacent said open end said throat is formed with oppositely disposed walls 18 which converge toward said open end and are preferably so curved as substantially to conform to the shape of the portions 13 of the staple Shanks, said curved concave portions 18l mergin into straight parallel portions 19 space s bstantially to correspondwto the maxim 1n width of the staple and adapted to guide the same into driving position. The drivin members 16 are provided at the outer si es of their lower ends with projections 20 which en age said shank portions 12 laterally as t e staple is driven.

In Fig. 2, a staple is shown in the throat 15 in position to be driven by the driving members 16 into a piece of work W rest-Q.

ing upon a suitable support 21. As the driving members 16 descend, the pointed ends 14 of the staple are caused to enter the Work, being, however, simultaneously deflected laterally toward one another by the curved converging portions 18 of the walls of the throat 15. A's the operation continues, as illustrated in Fi 3, causing the conver ng shank portlons 13 of theprongs, adjacent the ends 14, to be forced into the work, said prongs belng also progressively deflected inwardly toward one another as the enter the work. The arrangement is suc as to cause the polntfbs ed ends Mi'and adjacent portions of the prongs to pass into the work along or parallel to the curved lines generally indicated by the arrows on Fig. 1, the portions 12 of the shanks adjacent the body 10 being gradually bent to come closer to the body as this movement continues. The desired movement and bending of the shanks alono' the curved lines indicated is insured, an buckling prevented, by the portions 20 of the driving members 16, which portions, after the points of the staple have entered the work, engage the curved portions 18 of the walls of the throat so as? to give to said driving members a progressively increasing movement in a lateral direction toward one another and thus contract the driver as a whole. This o eration causes the staple to be compresse laterally, the prongs being forced toward one another so as to enable the staple to pass through the contracted open end of the throat, and supplying a progressively increased lateral comonent to the driving force, which is thereby applied, to the Shanks in a direction substantially arallel to the direction of movement of tiie pointed ends 14 during their penetration of the work. As the driver reaches the forward limit of its movement, the body 10 of the staple passes through the open end of the throat, the portions 13 of the shanks 11 thereof having been brou ht into a position substantially parralle with said body 10, being therefore clinched in the work although spaced from the side thereof opposite that from which the staple was driven, and the portions 12 of said prongs havingbeen brought into positions of substantial parallelism to the body'lO.

It will therefore be seen that the staple herein shown may be driven, in the manner and by the means described, part way only through the work but nevertheless be securely clinched within the latter by means of a clinching member (namely, the portions 18 of the throat 15) located on the same side of the work as the driver. The necessity of a clinching anvil at the opposite side of the work from the driver is therefore obviated, and said last named side of the work left unmarred by the anvil and unbroken by the points of the staples which are thoroughly sheathed within the body of the material, so as to be incapable of doing damage. It will also be seen that the staple described is further capable of advantageous use in connection with work of greater thickness than the length of the prongs, or with work whose side opposite that from which the staples are driven is inaccessible, so as to prevent the clinching of the latter by ordinary clinching means, the prongs of the present staple being securely clinched within the body of the work from the sidethereof from which they are driven.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

,1. A staple comprising a substantially straight wlre body provided at each end with a prong, said prongs curving toward one another and the free ends thereof converging in the direction away from said body.

2. A staple consisting of. a wire body having a pointed prong at each end, said prongs curving outwardly away from each other at their parts adjacent said body and then curving inwardly so that their pointed ends are directed toward each other.

In testimony whereof I aix my signature.v

. JAMES H. REED. 

